Octave vent for saxophones or similar wind instruments



M. SELMER Feb. 25, 1941.

OCTAVE VENT FOR SAXOPHONES OR SIMILAR 'WIND INSTRUMENTS Filed April 16, 1940 Snvenfor MAUR/cf .5f/.MER B QUEL ,Mgh/k,

(ftorneg Patented Feb. 25, 1941 PATENT OFFICE OCTAVE VENT FOR SAXOPHONES OR SIMILAR WIND INSTRUMENTS Maurice Selmer, Paris, France, assigner to H. Selmer & Cie, Paris, France Application April 16, 1940, Serial No. 329,869

10 Claims.

This invention relates to musical wind instruments, and more particularly, to saxophones or similar instruments of the type having octave vents.

The present invention has for its object to improve the quality of the sound produced under the control of the octave ven-t of a saxophone, and more particularly, to improve the quality, timbre and balance of the sound and evenness of the tones emitted. Further the object of the invention in this connection is to obviate the sharpening of the notes and to eliminate the hissing noises frequently produced with the ordinary octave vents. It is also an object of the invention to facilitate the emission of the notes under the control of the octave vent.

These objects of the invention and other objects ancillary thereto are accomplished by providing the mouth-pipe of the saxophone with an air chamber associated with the octave vent tube. Experience in the playing of saxophones provided with the air chamber in combination with the vent tube in accordance with this invention has demonstrated the substantial improvement achieved from the view point of the facility of the emission of the notes as well as the musical character thereof, for example, timbre, purity yand intensity of the notes `throughou-t and the absence of sharpening of the notes as Well as the elimination of hissing noises frequently produced as stated above with the ordinary octave vents of a saxophone.

In the accompanying drawing the preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated, and in the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the mouth-pipe provided with an octave vent embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, the vent key or valve being omitted;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

Referring now to the drawing in detail there is illustrated a mouth-pipe I of a saxophone provided with the octave vent I2 embodying the present invention. As here shown, said octave vent comprises a tubular or dome-shaped member I4 forming a chamber I5 in communication at the inner end thereof with the bore of the mouth-pipe and having at its upper end the vent tube I6 provided with a cylinder bore I8 in communication with said chamber. Chamber I5 is substantially wider than the bore of the vent tube 4and extends axially thereof, being interposed between the opening in the bore of the mouth-pipe and the inner end of the vent tube. The upper end of the said vent tube I6 is controlled by the usual key or valve 20 having any suitable operating device 22. The lower end of chamber forming member I4 is secured to the mouth-pipe by threading the same on the threaded projection 24 of boss 26 which is secured to the adjacent part of the wall of the mouth-pipe. As shown in the drawing, chamber I5 decreases in diameter from the inlet end thereof toward the inlet end of tube I6, said chamber having, as clearly shown, a substantially greater volume than the volume of bore I8.

The chamber I5 in combination with vent tube I6 embodies the principle of the invention illustrated in my other application, Serial No. 329,940 filed April 16, 1940, now Patent Number 2,226,536, illustrating and describing a clarinet and an oboe provided with octave vents having chambers surrounding their vent tubes, said vent tubes projecting into said chamber. As stated in said other application, the improvements in the quality and in the other above mentioned characteristics of the tones produced in playing instruments provided with octave vents embodying the present invention are clearly recognized in practice as a result of the comparison of the musical sounds produced in the playing of instruments having octave` vents of the present invention with the musical sounds produced in the playing of instruments having octave vents of the old type. I believe that the improved results are due, at least in part, to the following considerations although it may be possible that the underlying theory may be different.

It is known that the transmission of sound from the bell end of a saxophone or similar instrument will be diminished by opening a cylindrical vent in the side of the tube. This loss is due in part to radiation of sound through the vent, and in part to the energy expended in producing motion of the air in the tube of the vent. Additionally, a further loss takes place at the inward end of the vent tube. These losses are the cause of the difficulty of producing notes by the use of such a vent. My improved vent materially diminishes the total of these losses. A vent tube offers a certain complex impedance to the transmission of sound of the desired pitch. This impedance includes each of the factors mentioned above, of which the loss at the inward end of the tube will in many cases be an important part. With vents of the type previously employed, for example, the vent tube opens abruptly into the bore of the instrument. In the vent tube, air is moving axially of the tube, and immediately below the opening of the vent tube, inside the bore, air is moving axially of the bore. As these two motions combine at the opening of the tube, a very complicated motion pattern results. However, by the application of my resonance space around the opening of the Vent, I provide additional space in which this motion pattern may form, and I thus materially reduce the impedance of the opening. The impedance above referred to applies with respect; to the fundamental pitch of each note to be produced, and also to each of the parta-ls of harmonics which give the note its characteristic quality or timbre, The impedance of the vent will normally be greater for the higher pitched partials than for the fundamental pitch of any note, and any decrease in the impedance will therefore have greater eifect in increasing the partials than in increasing the fundamental. As a result, my improved vent notably improves the timbre of the tones produced, by increasing their content of the quality-giving partials.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that the latter may be embodied otherwise than as here speciiically disclosed. Therefore, I do not Wish to be limited to the invention as herein illustrated or specifically described except to the extent which may be required by the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A musical wind instrument of the class described provided with an octave vent having a key-controlled Vent tube, said tube having an outlet opening, and means forming a chamber or space extending axially of said vent tube in communication with the bore of the instrument, and with said outlet opening, through openings at opposite ends, respectively, of the chamber, the opening between said chamber and said bore of the instrument being substantially larger than the opening between said chamber and said tube.

2. A musical wind instrument of the class described provided with an octave vent having a key-controlled vent tube, said tube having an voutlet opening, and means forming a chamber or space extending axially of said vent tube in communication with the bore of the instrument, and with said outlet opening, through openings at opposite ends, respectively, of the chamber, the opening between said chamber and said bore of the instrument being substantially larger than the opening between said chamber and said tube, said vent tube projecting outwardly of said chamber.

3. An octave vent for a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, said vent comprising means forming a chamber adapted to project outwardly from said mouthpipe, in communication at its inner end with the bore of said mouth-pipe, and a vent tube carried by said chamber means and in communication with said chamber at the other end thereof, the volume of said chamber being substantially greater than the volume of said vent tube.

4. An octave vent for a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, said vent comprising means forming a chamber adapted to project outwardly from said mouthpipe, in communication at its inner end with the bore of said mouth-pipe and provided with an opening at its other end, and a vent tube carried by said chamber means and provided with a keycontrolled bore in communication with said chamber through said opening, the volume of said chamber being substantially greater than the volume of said bore.

5. In a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, an octave vent comprising a tubular member forming a chamber in communication with the bore of said mouthpipe through an opening therein, said member having a relatively wide open-end adjacent said opening and decreasing in volume from said end to the other end thereof, and a vent tube having a relatively narrow bore in Communication with said chamber near said other end thereof.

6. A mouth-pipe for a musical wind instrument of the class described provided with an octave vent having a key-controlled vent tube, said tube having an outlet opening, and a chamber interposed between the outlet of the bore of the mouth-pipe and the inlet end of said vent tube in communication with said bore and said tube, and with said outlet opening, through openings at opposite ends, respectively, of the chamber, the opening between said chamber and said bore of the instrument being substantially larger than the opening between said chamber and said tube.

7. A mouth-pipe for a musical wind instrument of the class described provided with an octave vent having a key-controlled vent tube, said tube having an outlet opening, and a chamber interposed between the outlet of the bore of the mouth-pipe and the inlet end of said vent tube in communication with said bore and said tube, and with said outlet opening, through openings at opposite ends, respectively, of the chamber, the opening between said chamber and said bore of the instrument being substantially larger than the opening between said chamber and said tube, said chamber being disposed substantially entirely outwardly of the mouth-pipe.

8. An octave vent for a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, said vent comprising means forming a chamber having an inner open end adapted to be connected to the mouth-pipe in communication at its inner end with the bore ci said mouth-pipe, and a vent tube carried by said chamber means and in communication with said chamber at the other end thereof, said chamber, when connected to the mouth-pipe, being disposed substantially entirely outwardly of the mouth-pipe and having a substantially greater volume than the volume of said tube and the inner end of said chamber being substantially larger than the other end thereof.

9. An octave vent for a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, said vent comprising means forming a chamber adapted to be connected to the mouth-pipe in outwardly projecting relation thereto with said chamber in communication at its inner end with the bore of said mouth-pipe and provided with an opening at its other end, and a vent tube carried by said chamber means at said other end thereof and provided with a key-controlled bore in communication with said chamber, said chamber having at its inner end an inlet opening which is substantially larger than the area oi said bore.

10. An octave vent for a saxophone or similar musical instrument having a mouth-pipe, said vent comprising a tubular member forming a chamber adapted to be connected to the mouthpipe in communication with the bore of said mouth-pipe through an opening therein, said member having a relatively wide open-end adjacent said opening and decreasing in volume from said end to the other end thereof, and a vent tube having a relatively narrow bore in communication with said chamber near said other end thereof.

MAURICE SELMER. 

